Premier League giants 'rival Arsenal in race for Viktor Gyokeres' - with one other European side 'ready to jump in for £70m Sporting Lisbon man'
Chelsea reportedly hope to ruin Arsenal 's search for a striker by going after one of their top targets: Viktor Gyokeres.
The Blues have reportedly made contact with the Portuguese club over the blazing-hot forward while Juventus are also said to be stepping up their pursuit.
Gyokeres has been in scintillating form this season, smashing in 54 goals in 52 games to help Sporting retain their league title - and making last campaign's haul of 43 look paltry in comparison.
Sporting will only let go of their man for a fee between £55million and £70m, depending on which reports you believe, but that is a goodwill reduction on his £85m release clause.
Now Chelsea and Juventus want a piece of the action, according to Portuguese outlet Record.
That will concern Arsenal, because Mikel Arteta has admitted that one of their priorities for this summer must be a 'goal threat'.
Injuries have hampered them significantly but no individual scored more than Kai Havertz's total of 15 this campaign.
Arsenal would hope that Gyokeres, who impressed at Coventry in the Championship before joining Sporting, could spearhead a serious title challenge.
Crucially, he is used to playing a lot of games - the 26-year-old has made 50 appearances or more in each of his last three seasons.
A clean injury record and eye for goal will be crucial whichever club he picks, with Chelsea and Juventus also set for demanding seasons in the Champions League.
Arsenal are realists and have cast their eyes across multiple options in case their pursuit of Gyokeres falls on deaf ears.
RB Leipzig's Benjamin Sesko has been cited as an option and, according to Marca, they are leading the race to sign Atletico Madrid's Julian Alvarez, though the Spaniard do not want to lose him.
Alvarez joined Atletico last summer after spending two seasons at the Etihad Stadium and has produced stunning numbers: 29 goals and seven assists.
During those two seasons in England, Alvarez scored 36 goals in 103 appearances and won six trophies with City, including two Premier League titles and one Champions League.
Alvarez penned a six-year contract with Atletico when he arrived from City in a transfer deal worth £81million last August.
His value has likely increased since then, meaning he could well be costlier to acquire than Gyokeres or Sesko.
Despite maintaining their position as the second best team in England for a third year in a row, Arsenal scored significantly fewer goals during the season just ended.
Arteta's men netted 69 times in their 38 league games (1.81 goals per game), having hit 88 (2.32 per game) and 91 (2.39 per game) in the previous two campaigns.
No Arsenal player reached double figures for Premier League goals in 2024-25, with Havertz leading the way with just nine.
Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard notched eight each, while makeshift striker Mikel Merino ended the season with seven.
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